


I Still Hate to Love You

by kpopkave



Category: EXO (Band), K-pop
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Not K-Pop Idols, College, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Smut, F/M, Falling In Love, Internal Conflict, M/M, Other, Past Relationship(s), Polyamory, Slow Build, Slow Burn, maybe a little too slow fdhkjsh, maybe?? - Freeform, who knows lol
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:14:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25734136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kpopkave/pseuds/kpopkave
Summary: Byun Baekhyun hates Park Chanyeol.That's how it's always been. Baekhyun has never thought that would change, but somehow the Universe has something to say about it. Chanyeol doesn't know why Baekhyun loves to hate him. All he knows is that he's cute when he's mad, and he'll do anything to keep from catching feelings.orBaekhyun is annoyed and flustered, Chanyeol is cocky and confused, and their friends are just along for the ride.(cross posted on wattpad and on tumblr under the same user name!)
Relationships: Bae Joohyun | Irene/Oh Sehun, Byun Baekhyun & Park Chanyeol, Byun Baekhyun/Park Chanyeol, Do Kyungsoo | D.O/Kim Jongin | Kai, Kim Jongdae | Chen/Kim Minseok | Xiumin, Kim Junmyeon | Suho/Park Chanyeol/Zhang Yi Xing | Lay, Kim Junmyeon | Suho/Zhang Yi Xing | Lay
Comments: 6
Kudos: 13





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hi hi! 
> 
> welcome to our first story :D this is the first chapter of our currently in progress series I Still Hate to Love You, i'm admin 🐨. i'll be running this account, since i have the most experience on here lol, i'm really excited to see what u guys think of our story so far 👀 we've worked really hard on it and have lots of good ideas for what we wanna do w it so if u like it stick around for more soon,,,
> 
> we'll be posting our stuff on here, [Wattpad](https://www.wattpad.com/story/229072618-i-still-hate-to-love-you), and [Tumblr](https://thekpopkave.tumblr.com/) so if u prefer those other platforms feel free to join us on those! we love getting messages and asks so pls feel free to go over there and give us new ideas, feedback, or just share what u think about yunho's pink hair (i for one am whipped, he's so pretty😪) or just say hi :D we have 2 admins so if one of us doesn't respond the other will do their best to answer :] we're also mutistans so if u have a different group u want us to do let us know! (we might be posting an ateez fic soon👀)
> 
> now onto the story! pls enjoy <3
> 
> -admin 🐨

Baekhyun had never disliked a person so quickly in his life than when he first met Park Chanyeol. 

To begin with, he was way too tall. What had he been eating? He was like 10 feet tall and he made Baekhyun feel small and insignificant. Worse, he was well aware of how tall he was and the power it gave him. 

“I’m hitting six foot one actually,” he had said, a smirk that Baekhyun hated almost as much as Chanyeol’s tallness appearing.

Oh, that was another thing. Chanyeol liked to smirk way too much. Baekhyun could be objective and admit that Chanyeol was good looking, he had a cute face that would show flashes of being handsome in between his stupid smile and his even more idiotic smirk, but Baekhyun was nothing but an honest person. The smirk irritated him from day one, something about it making Baekhyun grit his teeth and feel like he should leave before he ended up trying to hit Chanyeol and probably break his hand in the process. 

Baekhyun had no problem with confidence, he knew he himself was cute, and he liked seeing other people be confident too, but Chanyeol was where he drew the line. Why else would he wear a leather jacket like that and style his hair with just enough muss to make him look hot? Why else would he look like that when he knew people were checking him out? He knew what he was doing, Baekhyun wasn’t stupid, and he didn’t like it. Not one bit.

Yet, there was something that always drew them together. Baekhyun wasn’t sure why, but Chanyeol was always there, even when he hated him and his dumbass smirk. Some kind of force always ended up shoving them together, like they were destined. And maybe they were. All Baekhyun knew was that Park Chanyeol was a part of his life now, like it or not. 

``````````

Even if it was destiny, Baekhyun didn't have to suffer silently. 

“I can’t believe this!” He threw his hands in the air as he walked with Jongdae to the mess hall for lunch. “I can’t believe Professor Lim would do this to me,” Jongdae stifled laughter next to him, his eyes sparking with amusement and making Baekhyun more indignant. “I can’t work with him. I can’t! It’s a death sentence. He won’t do any work, and then I’ll have to do the whole thing, and then I’m gonna fight him to the death.” Jongdae laughed aloud as they entered the dining hall, a few people looking over at his loud voice. 

“Baekhyun, surely it’s not that bad.” Baekhyun pouted, standing in line for food and crossing his arms. He felt like a petulant child but he had a right to be upset.

Park Chanyeol was probably the worst person he could have been paired with, he was annoying, he was lazy, and he probably didn’t know anything about what they were doing. Baekhyun had seen him curled up on his desk fast asleep during their film history lessons, and anyone who slept in class got an immediate downvote from him.

Granted, the class was boring as fuck on it’s best days, so he couldn’t really blame anyone for succumbing to sleep during the lectures, but still. Baekhyun wasn’t about to let him off that easy.

“I know you hate this guy’s guts or whatever,” Jongdae passed Baekhyun a tray with a plate. “But maybe you guys can work out whatever animosity you have over this. I’m sure he’s a nice guy deep down.” Baekhyun snorted. 

“Deep, deep down maybe. He's an asshole, I can't imagine he has anything in his brain other than annoying thoughts about how to bother me,” Baekhyun said, scrunching his nose as he picked his entree. Jongdae rolled his eyes. 

“Didn’t you say he just sleeps in Film History? How is that annoying?” Baekhyun pointed the salad tongs at him. 

“Don’t take his side, you traitor. He snores, and sometimes he wakes up in the middle of the lecture and he sits in front of me and he’s too tall for me to see over him.” Jongdae coughed a laugh into his elbow and looked at Baekhyun amusedly. 

“You’re so weird about him. Are you sure you don’t like him?” Baekhyun felt his face flame up.

“What the fuck?” he spluttered, dropping a slice of cucumber on his tray and quickly tossing the serving tongs back. “No I dont fucking like him,” he hissed, feeling enraged at the mere suggestion. Baekhyun wasn’t like the crowd of people that always followed Chanyeol, gaping at his looks and swooning about his motorcycle. He had better things to do, like hate him. “He’s an idiot. I have standards you know,” he said, lifting his nose and moving along the line to pay. Jongdae shrugged. 

“Just saying, all this hate stuff looks like you might have a crush on him. You’re acting like a second grader.” Baekhyun ignored him and paid his food, marching off to their usual table. “Maybe you should give him a chance. Maybe he’s not an asshole after all.” Jongdae shrugged as he sat down and Baekhyun shook his head, unwrapping his silverware. “It’s not like you can do anything about it anyways,” Jongdae said, and Baekhyun sighed. 

“I guess not. But I don’t want to do it.” The whine that slipped into his voice made Jongdae roll his eyes again, and he changed the subject to something about his own classes, and Baekhyun listened while he ate his chicken. 

They chatted for a while, and soon the memory of being paired with the most annoying guy on campus faded into the back of Baekhyun’s mind. 

At least until he showed up.

Baekhyun was sure he had a sixth sense, something that told Chanyeol where he was so he could pester him in any way possible. He saw the tall, gray haired man walking into the dining hall from his seat, and he felt his shoulders tense. 

“Oh god, why me?” he said, slumping down in his seat, hoping Chanyeol would ignore him and go eat. He watched as Chanyeol got in line and got his food, before paying and walking down the aisle of tables. “Don’t look that way!” Baekhyun whispered fiercely at Jongdae when he turned to look at what Baekhyun was staring at.

“What is it?” Chanyeol’s eyes were scanning the crowd, and Baekhyun willed him to just find his friends and go to them. In a strange moment though, Chanyeol’s eyes met his, and the dining hall noise quieted to a buzz, and all Baekhyun could see was Chanyeol with his tray. A part of him (a small, small part) noted how pretty his eyes were, especially framed with his ashy bangs. Then his smirk appeared and Baekhyun yanked his gaze away, feeling his face flush. What was wrong with him?

“Oh,” Jongdae said, as he saw Chanyeol approaching them. “Oops.” 

Chanyeol stood next to their table, his tall self making Baekhyun feel irritated already just by being there.

“Hey.”

Baekhyun looked up at him, and sure enough, he was smiling at him like a fool. Chanyeol waved at Jongdae who waved back, looking like he was holding back a smile. Traitor. “What do you want?” he snapped, and Chanyeol clasped a hand over his heart and pouted. 

“Is that how you treat your partner?” Baekhyun scowled. 

“When he’s an asshat like you, yes. What do you want?”

“Your number.” Jongdae was watching the whole interaction with a seemingly horrified amusement, and Baekhyun wanted to crawl into a hole and die. Chanyeol was such an idiot. “Before you get excited though, it’s just for school stuff.”

Chanyeol’s smirk was back with force, and Baekhyun clutched his fork in his hand, reminding himself he couldn’t attack another human, that would go against everything he stood for. 

“Who said I’m not asking for a partner change?” Baekhyun could see the amusement in Chanyeol’s eyes. 

“We both know Professor Lim would never agree to changing partners. Besides, I know you’re a little nerd, and you like getting good grades. So it makes sense that you’d work with me even though you don’t like me for this project.” Chanyeol’s smirk was out again, and Baekhyun glared at him. 

They were like that for a moment, Baekhyun trying to strangle him with his gaze and Chanyeol grinning like a loon. Then Baekhyun’s logical brain intercepted. He really had no choice, Chanyeol was right even though Baekhyun hated to admit it. His grades were too important for him to throw them away even if he didn’t like Chanyeol. 

“I’m not gonna let you slack. Don’t think this is a free ride to a good grade. The moment you don’t do something I'm reporting you,” Baekhyun threatened, pulling his phone out. Chanyeol’s smile widened if possible, and he nodded. 

“Sounds reasonable.” Baekhyun gave him his phone number on a piece of napkin and tossed it onto his tray. 

“Now go away, you’re ruining my appetite.” Chanyeol saluted him and winked at Jongdae, who just waved and began laughing. 

“Oh my god you weren’t lying, you really do hate him.” Baekhyun stabbed his chicken and rolled his eyes. 

“He’s the worst.” Baekhyun watched as Chanyeol practically strutted away like a weird bird, feeling a weird combination of emotions in his chest. 

Jongdae hummed. “He’s cute though,” he said, smiling. Baekhyun tossed a carrot slice at him. 

“Shut up,” he grumbled into his salad, definitely not thinking about the way Chanyeol’s eyes had lit up. 

``````````

The rest of Baekhyun’s day went by in relatively normal uneventfulness, and he cherished every moment of it. He was a very organized person, he liked to live comfortably, and he found the most comfort in regularity and order. Even though Jongdae liked to clown him about his four different planners and his insanely neat desk, Baekhyun found peace in knowing how things were and the dependability that organization offered. 

That was probably why love scared him so much.

Baekhyun’s first love was a neighbor he had when he was 13. It was the way he figured out that girls weren’t quite his thing, and also the way he figured out that him liking boys wasn’t other people’s thing either. His parents had been supportive, but his neighbors had decided to move 3 states over to keep him from “infecting” their son. From then on, Baekhyun had approached the subject of love and crushes with a distance that he knew he could control.

He hadn’t ever done anything more than kiss a boy, the fear of the unknown abyss that was physical intimacy made his palms sweat and his skin itch. And while it wasn’t like he didn’t want to do anything more, he just wasn’t sure what to do. Thoughts of the way his neighbor looked at him would always cloud his mind and convince him that he couldn’t risk it. Comfort in regularity. Love was too irregular for him to want anything to do with it. Losing control like he had once to only get rejected again would be far more painful than it had been the first time. 

So, Baekhyun liked his schedule and he liked keeping things the same. Every weekday that he could he went to his favorite coffee shop to unwind and do some homework before going back to his and Jongdae’s place, and that afternoon was no exception. 

“Hi!” Jongin’s bright smile was just as comforting as it was every other day he came in, and Baekhyun found himself smiling back. 

“Hey. How are you?” Jongin shrugged, his smile lopsided. 

“I’m okay. Your usual?” Baekhyun nodded and went to pay at the counter. Jongin was possibly the kindest person Baekhyun had ever met in his life. He always had kind words and encouragement for him, and he laughed at all of Baekhyun’s jokes, which was something few people did. He also made some of the best coffee he had ever tried. It was safe to say Jongin was probably his favorite person ever. 

“I heard you got a new partner for Film History,” Jongin said, his eyes playful and Baekhyun busied himself with finding exact change in his wallet. 

“Yeah, I guess I did.” Jongin took the money he offered and printed his receipt. 

“He’s not that bad if you give him a chance,” he said, his voice gaining a pleading tone. Baekhyun raised his eyebrows. 

“Is everyone suddenly pro-Chanyeol?” Jongin pursed his lips at him. 

“I have to be, I live with him.” Baekhyun sighed and frowned sympathetically, playing it up to see Jongin smile again. 

“I am so sorry that happened to you.” Jongin’s laugh made Baekhyun smile, and he shook his head. “Really, a tragedy.” Jongin gave him his receipt and went to make his coffee. 

“I mean it though Baek, he’s not bad. He’s really sweet and he’s smart, and he likes film. You guys have a lot in common.” Baekhyun ran his finger tip along the edge of the counter and hummed. It seemed to be the general consensus that Chanyeol was God’s gift to mankind, but Baekhyun had seen enough from people like him before. They liked to play games with people, and Baekhyun had been close enough to someone like that for them to scald him with their egotistic manners. 

“I think I know him well enough for now, thanks. Besides, it's just one project, I can deal with it.” Chanyeol had been right to say that Baekhyun liked having good grades. He would probably crawl over broken glass to make sure his grades stayed above a B at all times. Jongdae called him a control freak. Maybe he was. 

“Well, at least be civil with him. He seemed kind of bothered by the way you guys don’t get along.” Jongin’s puppy gaze was out now, and Baekhyun rolled his eyes. 

“Yeah I'm sure having just one person not like him really put his panties in a twist,” Jongin frowned a little as he handed Baekhyun his coffee. 

“He doesn’t like being disliked. But if you were him you wouldn’t either.” The solemnity in Jongin’s gaze and in his words made Baekhyun blink. 

“I’ll be civil,” he promised, before taking a swig of his coffee. “Great as always Nini, thanks.” Jongin beamed at him and Baekhyun had to wonder how such an angel had befriended such a jerk like Chanyeol. Jongin’s words ricocheted in his mind, and he couldn’t help but think about them as he sat to work.

Maybe there was more to Chanyeol than whatever front he put on in public. Baekhyun could relate, he had been through times where he couldn’t bear the thought of being disliked, but he couldn’t imagine caring so much now. He could be civil enough, he thought, as long as Chanyeol didn’t try to pull any funny business. The thought of Chanyeol and funny business made him turn red and he dug into his bag for his computer to work on something. 

He sat in the comfortable space of his usual table, headphones on with some low-fi music playing to help him concentrate for a few hours, until Jongdae texted him and begged for food with a string of emojis that made Baekhyun shake his head and smile fondly. He left the coffee shop after packing his things and stopped by their favorite thai place and got their dinner before finally arriving at their apartment. 

“Finally!” Jongdae just about fell off their couch with excitement when Baekhyun entered, dropping his book and darting for the food. “I haven’t eaten since lunch!” Baekhyun laughed as Jongdae dug into the food, settling back onto the couch with a pleased hum. As Baekhyun went to the kitchen for a glass of water, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and checked his messages, where a new message from an unknown number waited for him. 

**_Yo! It’s Chanyeol ;D_ **

Baekhyun’s first instinct was to delete the message and carry on with his life like he would have at any other point. But he stopped himself with a groan and opened his messaging app. His thumbs hovered over the keyboard for a moment, before he typed a reply out. 

**_What do you want?_ **

The little bubble with the dots appeared and Baekhyun felt dread lace his stomach. 

**_Wow. Are you always this rude?_ **

Baekhyun scoffed and made a face at his phone. 

**_Only to people who deserve it._ **

A part of Baekhyun felt bad for being so short with him, but the logic in his mind told him Chanyeol wouldn’t be losing any sleep over it. 

**_Are you going to answer my question?_ **

Baekhyun stood in the kitchen, glass in hand, staring at his phone and waiting for a reply. Jongdae’s voice came from the other room. 

“Hey, do we have any ketchup?” Baekhyun blinked. Suddenly aware that he, Byun Baekhyun, was waiting for a reply from the person he liked least in the world. What was he doing? Chanyeol was probably at a party or something stupid like that, it was no skin off Baekhyun’s back. He put his glass down and looked for ketchup. He finally found it in the back of the refrigerator, hiding behind a jar of something weird he would rather not know about. When he turned, Jongdae was standing right behind him, making him jump about a mile into the air. 

“What the-what are you doing?” Jongdae pouted at him. 

“You took too long,” he said, and Baekhyun squints at him. “Who’s texting you so much?” Baekhyun glanced at his phone which was lighting up. 

“No one,” he said quickly, feeling warm suddenly. Jongdae raised an eyebrow but said nothing as Baekhyun grabbed his phone and put it in his pocket. He edged around Jongdae and escaped to the living room, sitting on the couch and trying not to seem uncomfortable or embarrassed, which he totally was. Thankfully, Jongdae seemed to read the situation and didn’t ask him any questions, and they ate in relative silence, 

Baekhyun itching to both check his phone and also throw it out a window. When they finished and cleaned up, Baekhyun said a quick goodnight before going to his room and shutting the door. He felt like he was betraying someone as he took his phone out and checked it. Chanyeol had sent a few texts, all followed by weird, random emojis. He grimaced as he scrolled through them, wishing he had given him a fake number instead. The last message was one that caught Baekhyun’s eye. 

**_Library, 4pm, tomorrow?_ **

It was followed by a string of winky faces that both made Baekhyun feel funny inside but also annoyed as hell. He sighed. He might as well get used to it if he was going to be working with Chanyeol, he was going to be insufferable regardless. He shot back a quick response, closing his phone and sitting on the edge of his bed. He sat there a moment, his thoughts drifting to how he had felt while looking at Chanyeol in the dining hall. _“Are you sure you don’t like him?”_ The thought of Jongdae's unbelieving tone made Baekhyun scoff to himself. Of course he didn’t like him. Chanyeol was irritating and abrasive and he was definitely out to get him. 

Even if he was really good looking and had pretty eyes, Baekhyun couldn’t like him. It was the principle of the matter, they were too different. He flopped back onto his mattress and stared at his ceiling. Maybe Chanyeol would think he liked him if he showed up alone, it would seem a little...date-ish...right? Baekhyun’s thoughts raced as he chewed his lip. If Chanyeol thought Baekhyun liked him, there would be no end to the torture, he would just keep bothering him until Baekhyun died (had anyone ever died of annoyance before? Baekhyun wasn’t sure). He sat up suddenly, ignoring the spinning of his head and launching himself out his door to Jongdae’s room. 

“Hey!” He banged on Jongdae’s door a couple times, still biting his lip and now pacing on the carpet outside of his roommate’s door. The door opened, and Jongdae’s face mask covered visage poked out along with Ariana Grande’s golden vocals. 

“Where’s the fire?” he asked, trying not to move his mouth too much to keep the mask on. 

“You’re free tomorrow right?” 

“Well, I have class at 12 and then I have to meet with someone at 3, but yeah-” Baekhyun slapped the doorway with triumph, making Jongdae flinch. 

“What the fuck is up with you right now? Did you drink something weird?” Jongdae’s judgmental eyes watched as he began to back away. 

“You’re coming with me!” he said, smiling. Jongdae’s voice followed him all the way back to his room. 

“What? Where are you going? Come back here! Where are you taking me-” Baekhyun shut his door behind him and leaned against it, a relieved smile creeping across his face. If Baekhyun had to suffer, it wasn’t going to be alone.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Admin 🐨 here to say thank u to all the ppl who have read and kudos-ed and left comments! yall are the best ever and we are super thankful that u all think our idea is good enough to spend time reading it <3 shout out to all the ppl who got us over 100 hits!! amazing!!! we really didn't think this would take off as much as it has, and we're excited to see what yall think of the rest of the story we have in progress :D 
> 
> as always, yall can reach us on [Tumblr](https://thekpopkave.tumblr.com/), [Wattpad](https://www.wattpad.com/user/thekpopkave) or on here!! don't be shy ;) 
> 
> now, onto the next chapter of ISHTLY (not v catchy lol but good enough)! this one is a little shorter i think than the first one, but what can i say we like some slow burn in this household 😌 
> 
> -admin 🐨
> 
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> 
> Hi and welcome back to our story! We are already back with our second chapter because of the amount of support we've received already, we wanted to post an update as soon as we could. You guys haven't heard from me, I'm admin 🐻 and I'm the second and last admin of these stories! I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as the last and don't be afraid to give us feedback, we both love hearing what people think. 
> 
> \- Admin🐻

There are few things that scare Park Chanyeol.

Even while it seemed like he was a natural talking to people, he still had to wipe his hands on his jeans before he even left his house. So imagine his elation when he walked away from a table with a cute boy’s phone number. Granted, the cute boy hated him (for some reason), but it was a start. Mama Park didn’t raise a quitter. He would do anything to make Baekhyun see him differently. 

“What’d you do now?” Kyungsoo’s sharp eyes caught his gaze and he frowned. 

“What’d you mean? Why do I have to have a reason to smile?” Kyungsoo’s eyebrows shot up and Jongin giggled. 

“You’re always up to something,” Jongin said, and Chanyeol shook his head with mock hurt. 

“I am shocked and offended that my own friends would say this about me. That’s slander, you know.” Kyungsoo gave him one last side glance before turning back to his lunch. 

“Whatever it is, I don’t want to have to clean up after you.” Chanyeol couldn’t help but look over at where Baekhyun sat, his ears heating up. 

“No, no cleaning up after me. I’ve got it all under control.” Jongin followed his gaze and gave him a look. The tiniest of smiles crept across his face, making Chanyeol feel slightly uneasy. 

“What?” he asked. Jongin’s eyes grew playful as he watched Chanyeol drink from his cup. 

“Your face is red. What’d he say?” Chanyeol looked down at his food, feeling very exposed suddenly. 

“Who said what?” Kyungsoo snorted, not looking up from his food. 

“You can’t lie to us, we know you.” Chanyeol looked at Jongin, with his big eyes and felt his face grow warmer. 

“I’m not lying about anything,” he said, which sounded weak even to himself. 

“Everyone knows how Baekhyun feels about you.” Chanyeol tried not to let Kyungsoo’s words affect him, but he could feel a tiny splinter of hurt in his heart. 

“I never did anything to him, I don’t know why he hates me.” Ever since they had met, Baekhyun had nothing but disdain for him and everything he did, and Chanyeol wasn’t able to ever figure out why. 

“I don’t think he hates you,” Jongin said soothingly, his eyes now soft. “Maybe he’s just conflicted, moving to a new school is hard. Plus you do come on pretty intimidating to people when they first meet you.” He reached out and patted his hand and Chanyeol managed a smile. For some reason, knowing that Baekhyun didn’t like him really unsettled Chanyeol. He had always been a friendly person, he thrived as the center of attention, and his charisma had helped him get past some less impressive parts of his life. It was just something about Baekhyun that made Chanyeol determined to be liked by him. He glanced over at Baekhyun’s table again, watching as he waved his fork around, talking to Jongdae with expressive eyes. Something in his brain settled, and he felt himself smile. 

“I guess I should just get used to it then.” He took a bite of his food, still smiling. Chanyeol would just have to do what he did best then. 

*****

“I think there’s something wrong with me.” Chanyeol looked over at Sehun, eyebrows raised. They were walking home from the gym in relative silence, Chanyeol messaging Kyungsoo to ask (more like beg, Kyungsoo was mean) for dinner when his brother spouted this random fear. 

“What?” Sehun’s brows were drawn together firmly and Chanyeol couldn’t help but laugh a little. He still looked like a kid when he did that. 

“How do you know when you like someone?” Chanyeol stopped, his eyes going wide. 

“You like someone?” Sehun’s face grew pink and he looked around, shushing him. 

“I don’t know if I like anyone yet. I mean. There’s someone but I don’t know-” Chanyeol grabbed his brother’s shoulders and shook him slightly. 

“Why haven’t you mentioned this before? What’s their name? Where’d you meet them? Are they cute?” Sehun looked overwhelmed and embarrassed, his ears fully red now. 

“Okay, calm down! This is why I don't tell you these things.” Chanyeol let go of him but kept his wide eyed gaze on his little brother. “Her name’s Irene Bae. She’s in my English Comp class. We got assigned the same topic for an essay and she had to grade mine. Yeah, she’s cute.” Sehun had the smallest of smiles as he spoke, like he couldn’t quite help it, and Chanyeol beamed. Sehun wasn’t the most open person ever, he liked keeping quiet about his feelings and personal things even with his own family, so Chanyeol couldn’t help but feel a little proud at being the one he turned to. 

“Irene huh? I’ve seen her around. She’s studying journalism right?” Sehun nodded, his face lighting up. “Yeah, I see her by the science building most mornings. I could talk to her about-” Something in the window of the cafe they were passing by caught his eye, and he stopped in his tracks again. 

There was Baekhyun, in all his tiny glory, hunched over his computer with headphones on, mug in hand. His brow was furrowed like it was when he glared at Chanyeol, and his bottom lip stuck out as he pouted at his screen. It was the absolute cutest thing Chanyeol had seen since himself. Sehun’s hand blocked his view and he startled. 

“Dude, you’re staring.” Chanyeol blinked quickly at him before shaking his head. 

“No, I'm not.” Sehun squinted at him for a moment, glancing through the window before he smirked knowingly. 

“Yeah. Right.” He walked away from the cafe window, and Chanyeol hesitated, shooting one last look at Baekhyun before darting after Sehun. He spent the rest of the walk home avoiding Sehun’s pointed questions and asking some of his own.

A plan was forming in his head to help Sehun in his time of crisis, it seemed like he thought Irene would blow him off and not give him a second look. But Chanyeol knew how to work past that kind of thing. They got to his place, Sehun still trying to pester something out of him about Baekhyun, and clattered into the living room, seeing Kyungsoo and Jongin on the couch studying. 

“Do you have to be so loud all the time?” Kyungsoo asked, his tone unimpressed. Chanyeol noted the slight flush to his face and raised his eyebrows. Jongin was quiet, his face also flushed but his eyes wide as he looked up at them. 

“Yes. I do. It’s a contract I signed from birth,” he said, smiling widely when Jongin laughed. 

“What’s for dinner?” he asked, still smiling as Kyungsoo got up from the couch muttering to himself. 

“Leftovers,” Kyungsoo said to Chanyeol before disappearing into the kitchen. Sehun left to borrow Chanyeol’s shower, leaving Chanyeol with Jongin, who seemed to be a little uncomfortable now that they were alone. 

“So, what’s up with you guys?” Chanyeol collapsed onto the couch next to his friend, his arm coming across the back of the couch. Jongin leaned back, resting his head on Chanyeol’s arm. 

“I don’t know,” Jongin said, his eyes a little sad as he chewed on his bottom lip. “Sometimes I think-” He shook his head and closed his eyes for a moment. “Sometimes I think we have something special. But then he just,” Jongin waved a hand around and Chanyeol hummed. 

Kyungsoo and Jongin had been tiptoeing around each other ever since Chanyeol had met them, sometimes they were more like boyfriends, and sometimes they were just guys who lived together. Their relationship was the source of many tear filled conversations between Chanyeol and Jongin, and many stiff, cold ones with Kyungsoo. 

They were an excellent example as to why Chanyeol liked avoiding the whole love thing, at least for now. In his mind, it didn’t make sense to break yourself over such trivial things like feelings, especially at the prime of youth. He had a lot on his plate already, a double major in film and business, plus his part time job all kept him busy enough to make love something secondary.

Besides, he had Yixing and Junmyeon. They were more than enough right now. For some reason, the thought of Baekhyun fluttered to the front of his mind but he pushed it away. 

“Kyungsoo’s clueless sometimes. He doesn’t mean to hurt you,” Chanyeol said, pulling Jongin into a brief hug. “Personally I think you can do better than him,” Chanyeol jokes, making Jongin snort and pull away from him. 

“Yeah, but maybe I don’t want to.” Jongin’s eyes were big and emotional, and Chanyeol found himself feeling something swell in his stomach like butterflies. 

Jongin really liked Kyungsoo, that much was apparent. Chanyeol could only ever guess what that felt like, to care so much for someone in such a deep way, but the way that Jongin looked at him now was making him wonder. Maybe he wanted to know that feeling. 

They sat on the couch in silence, Jongin leaning against his arm like a pillow and Chanyeol quietly pondering. Sehun came out of the shower after a few more minutes and Chanyeol took his turn to wash the gym smell from his body. After he got dried and dressed, Kyungsoo announced that dinner was ready and they all sat at the table to eat. Kyungsoo had a real gift with food, even his leftovers were amazing. 

*****

Sehun left a little after eating, saying he had to do some school stuff even though they all knew he was probably going to play video games for the rest of the night, and Chanyeol decided to let Kyungsoo and Jongin work their own issues out alone. He went to his room and took his phone and the crumpled napkin piece Baekhyun had thrown at him. The thought of Baekhyun’s scrunched nose as he wrote on it made Chanyeol smile, and he unwrapped the napkin. He sat on his bed and opened his messaging app, typing the number in and preparing to send a text.

Chanyeol was a natural texter, as someone who struggled to face people in real life, he always found himself able to communicate better with a screen between himself and others. But for some reason, words wouldn't come to him at that moment. He wrote something before deleting the whole thing, horrified at the way he had written it. 

Why was he so nervous? There was nothing to be nervous about, it wasn't like Baekhyun could dislike him any more than he already did, plus Chanyeol had decided to bother him until Baekhyun gave in. He wrote a few other attempts at a text before throwing his phone aside and sighing. He threw himself beside it and ran his hands through his hair. Again with the nerves. 

_If I didn't know any better,_ said a voice in his head that sounded a lot like Kyungsoo, _I would say you actually like Byun Baekhyun._ He closed his eyes tightly. He didn't. Baekhyun was cute, sure, but he was way too much of a tightass for Chanyeol. Plus he hated his guts, which was a pretty big turn off. Chanyeol just wanted to deal with this project and maybe make Baekhyun stop hating him. That was all.

He clapped his hands and sat up, grabbing his phone. He glared at it for a second before opening it and going to the messaging app again. He typed with a fury and finally sent a message. He looked at his phone for a minute, rereading the message. He hated it. Holy shit he hated it. He groaned, falling back into his mattress with his phone clasped to his chest. He lay there, wondering if he could jump out of his window without causing damage to the rest of the dorms when his phone pinged. 

He scrambled to check it, letting out a little victory whoop when he saw Baekhyun had texted him back. Oh. He frowned at his phone for a moment at the sharp question Baekhyun had sent him. A smile slipped onto his face when he pictured the way Baekhyun was no doubt glaring at his phone. He was adorable, this would be too much fun. He shot back a reply and waited. Sure enough, Baekhyun's snappy response was quick, and Chaneyol grinned to himself. He was about to respond before he caught himself. Maybe he shouldn't answer right away. 

His mind churned with ideas and he put his phone down. Baekhyun was nothing but impatient with Chanyeol. To get the best effect, he would have to wait. He decided to look at his work schedule and think about what he had to do for the project in film history. He might want to bother Baekhyun but he wasn't going to let the whole thing bring his grade down. The scholarship he had would disappear if he let himself slip too far, and then he would have to explain to his family why he suddenly couldn't help them with their future. 

He finally decided to write back to Baekhyun, sending him a few dumb jokes he knew usually made people flush and stutter when he used them in person but he knew Baekhyun would find annoying as fuck. Finally he asked if Baekhyun was free the next day to work together, hoping he would say no so he could pester him about it. He sat back, a grin on his face as he saw the message be read and no sign of a response. Surely Baekhyun would say no because he thought he was irritating, and Chanyeol would be saved from him for a day and he could laugh at him. He felt his smile widen as he saw Baekhyun typing after a couple minutes, fully prepared to shoot back a teasing message. 

_**Sure. See you then.** _

Chanyeol's smile vanished, and he stared. He said yes? Holy shit. He blinked and put his phone down. He hadn't prepared for a yes. What was he supposed to do now? His mind spun before he landed on an idea. He snatched his phone up again and looked for a specific name in his contacts. 

_**Hey, you free tomorrow?** _

**Author's Note:**

> i hope u guys enjoyed it!! pls leave a comment and some kudos if u did, we would really appreciate it :D dont be afraid to comment requests, give us feedback or go see us on [Tumblr](https://thekpopkave.tumblr.com/) or [Wattpad](https://www.wattpad.com/user/thekpopkave) <3 
> 
> have a splendid week lovelies! 
> 
> -admin 🐨


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